Solar to Shine at 2011 AHR Expo

Solar products, trends, and technologies and their role in the HVACR marketplace will take center stage during the 2011 International Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition (AHR Expo), to be held Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas.

"Solar is one of the fastest-growing segments of the many sustainable technologies featured at the show," Clay Stevens, president of International Exposition Co., which produces and manages the AHR Expo, said. "At least 54 companies we know of will be featuring solar products. ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) and other leading industry organizations have created special solar educational sessions for AHR Expo, and the UA (United Association) green trailer will be providing ongoing solar demonstrations."

ASHRAE will offer 10 solar-focused sessions ranging from a forum titled "The Role of Solar and Other Renewable Energy Sources in Strategic Energy Planning" to seminars on topics such as the integration of solar and hydronic heating into residential and small commercial systems. The International Energy Agency, meanwhile, will conduct a workshop on solar cooling. Two other solar-related sessions will deal with hydronic design for solar-thermal and hydronic-heat-pump systems. (For the complete 2011 AHR Expo education schedule, go to www.ahrexpo.com/forvisitors/2011ed.php.)

In its Sustainable Technologies Mobile Training Trailer on the show floor, UA will demonstrate solar-energy production and storage, as well as solar water heating. Designed to highlight sustainable systems that could be included in a U.S. Green Building Council LEED green-building-certification-system Platinum-rated building, the trailer is fully functional and interactive so AHR Expo attendees can observe systems’ proper installation and operation.

The 2011 AHR Expo will feature more than 1,800 exhibitors from around the world. Attendees and exhibitor personnel are expected to exceed 45,000.

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